The present invention relates to a crib apparatus and particularly, to a crib apparatus for supporting infants and toddlers during their stays at a hospital. More particularly, this invention relates to a crib apparatus having chair and bed portions.
Adult hospital patients typically are provided with hospital beds adjustable to sitting positions, for example, to facilitate serving of meals to the patients. Meals are generally served to such a patient on an overbed table placed adjacent to the patient""s bed so that the overbed table is oriented over the patient""s lap when the bed is oriented so that the patient is sitting up. After the meal, the overbed table is moved away from the bed and stored elsewhere.
Infants are generally fed while being held by an adult. However, children between the ages of, for example, 9 months and 4 years, are generally too large to be fed in the arms of an attending health care worker or parent, but are too young to be fed using an overbed table. Such children might eat sitting in conventional high chairs or booster seats when at home. However, such equipment may not be available in a hospital.
Furthermore, health care workers who attend to children at hospitals often stand beside the child""s crib. Attending health care workers thus prefer for the child to be supported at a relatively high elevation to facilitate access to the child. On the other hand, a parent of a hospitalized child may spend considerable time seated in a chair at the child""s bedside. For this reason, parents may prefer for the child to be supported at a relatively low elevation to facilitate access to the child.
Thus, a child""s bed that is adjustable through a wide range of elevations and includes an integrated high chair would be appreciated by health care workers and parents. Health care workers and parents would also appreciate a child""s bed having rails that are movable to positions permitting unobstructed access to the child. In addition, health care workers and parents would appreciate a child""s bed that permits the child to be moved into and out of the bed without the need to disconnect and reconnect any tubes or wires that are coupled to the child, for example, for the administration of health care.
Accordingly, an embodiment of the present invention includes a mattress and a crib structure configured to support the mattress. The crib structure includes a chair portion, a tray movable relative to the chair portion, and a crib rail assembly movable relative to the mattress and relative to the chair portion. In preferred embodiments, the tray moves horizontally relative to the chair portion, and the crib rail assembly moves vertically relative to the chair portion. Some embodiments include a powered drive assembly that is operable to change the position of the mattress relative to the chair portion. According to one embodiment, the crib structure includes a first end unit having a chair portion and a second end unit having a storage compartment.
In an illustrative embodiment the crib structure includes a chair portion having an upwardly-facing seat surface and a back surface extending above the seat surface and terminating at a top edge. In this embodiment, the crib structure further includes a tray movable between a first position covering the seat surface and covering the top edge and a second position uncovering at least a portion of the seat surface.
In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, an apparatus includes a mattress having a periphery and an upwardly-facing surface. The apparatus includes a crib structure configured to support the mattress. The crib structure has a pair of spaced apart end units, each of which has a top surface. The crib structure also has a plurality of crib rail assemblies positioned about the periphery of the mattress. The crib rail assemblies are movable vertically relative to the mattress and each of the crib rail assemblies has a top rail edge. The mattress and crib rail assemblies are movable to a position in which the top surfaces of the end units, the top edges of the crib rail assemblies, and the upwardly-facing surface of the mattress are substantially coplanar.
Also in accordance with the illustrative embodiment, the crib structure includes a plurality of crib rail assemblies each having a pair of spaced apart side edges. The crib rail assemblies are movable vertically relative to the mattress between raised and lowered positions. Each crib rail assembly is movable independent of each of the other crib rail assemblies. A plurality of gaps are defined between the side edges of the crib rails when the crib rails are in the raised position. The gaps are configured to permit passage of medical lines therethrough.
Additional features and advantages of this apparatus will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiment exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the apparatus as presently perceived.